Visit to Becker Vineyards

[hotwine]

Attended a short course in viticulture this past week (aka how to lose money with grapes) in Fredericksburg Tx, deep in the Hill Country. Great course. D came up last night as the course ended and we had a very nice dinner at the Navajo Grill, then this morning went out to Becker at the invitation of their GM, whom I had met during the week. Bret was very generous with his time, giving us a grand tour and describing expansion plans for both the winery and the tasting room. Very classy.

Becker had provided many of the wines featured at social functions during the week, and I had been particularly impressed with their Merlot, Barbera and Viognier. And Bret gave us a taste of another, only sold at the winery, that's a Rhone-style blend they call the Prairie Rotie. Outstanding! So we walked out of there with five cases, two of the Barbera and one of each of the others. Had to go straight to the cellar as soon as we got home. Great time! (burp)

[This message has been edited by hotwine (edited 02-22-2007).]

[dananne]

Sounds like a fun time. Also, it was interesting to read, as in the past you've seemed a bit underwhelmed with the quality of Texas wine. Is Becker somewhat of an anomaly, or do you think across-the-board quality in Texas has improved in the past few years?

[hotwine]

It's true that I've generally shied away from Texas wines in the past. However, Becker has been working hard on quality, and they're now setting the standard for the Hill Country, and indeed for the whole state. They're making arrangements with growers to obtain the best grapes, and they're sticklers for cleanliness and environmental control in the winery, which pays off in the finished product. They're on a big time roll and it's fun to watch.

[Kcwhippet]

My total exposure to Texas wines has been a Messina Hof Cab about 8-10 years ago. It was OK as I recall - not great, but not bad.

[Innkeeper]

If that's the one on the left side of the highway as you are coming in from Austin, we've been there, and liked it.

[hotwine]

Messina Hof is coming along nicely but not at the pace of Becker. Favs so far from MH are their PG, Zin and Port-style.

IK, Becker is on the left side as you come in from Austin.... but so now are at least three others! It's a very busy area.

[winoweenie]

Whoda' thunk it? Maybe there's hope for our Arizona wineries after all. Sounds delish. WW

[hotwine]

There are now 165 wineries across the state. Gillespie County in which Fredericksburg is located has Bell Mountain, Torre di Pietra, Oberhof, Grape Creek, Woodrose, Fredericksburg, and Chisholm Trail, in addition to Becker. Go 20 miles from Fbg and you'll scare up at least half a dozen more. Tour buses choke the highways on weekends. Reminds me of Gatlinberg!

[winoweenie]

Loved their gun. WW [img]http://wines.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img]